Here at the FTC, we\u2019re known for getting things done on behalf of regular people. Unfortunately, sometimes scammers try to take advantage of our good reputation.<\/p>\n
The latest example: Some people have gotten an email that claims to be from Maureen Ohlhausen, the FTC\u2019s Acting Chairman. But it\u2019s not. The email asks you to give your bank account information \u2013 so, it says, you can get money from the government\u2019s settlement with Western Union. The email is a scam to steal your financial information. And it\u2019s just the latest variation of an imposter scam. In 2016, consumers reported more complaints about imposter scams to the FTC than any other fraud.<\/p>\n
If you get an email like this, don\u2019t respond or click on any links. You can forward it to the FTC at spam@uce.gov.<\/p>\n
The FTC is involved in a $586 million settlement with Western Union, but the U.S. Department of Justice will run the refunds process. And it hasn\u2019t started yet.<\/p>\n
This email is a good reminder that scammers are skilled liars. They\u2019ll say anything or claim to be anyone to get your financial information \u2013 then they\u2019ll use it to steal from your financial accounts or commit other crimes.<\/p>\n
The FTC does shut down scams and return money to people who lost it to dishonest or unfair business practices. But we will never ask for money, your Social Security number, or any banking information so you can apply for a refund or cash a check. If the FTC needs to get money to you, we usually send a check through the mail.<\/p>\n
Got a question? We\u2019ve got more information about our current refund programs and our procedures for refunding money at FTC.gov\/refunds. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Here at the FTC, we\u2019re known for getting things done on behalf of regular people. Unfortunately, sometimes scammers try to take advantage of our good reputation. The latest example: Some people have gotten an email that claims to be from Maureen Ohlhausen, the FTC\u2019s Acting Chairman. But it\u2019s not. The email asks you to give […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bank"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n